• 1940s Ensemble in Navy •

This gorgeous ensemble is my mom's most recent creation, and it's already a favorite! We both sewed outfits in red from the same patterns for vacation, but haven't photographed them yet.

She made this dress from fabric she purchased while we were on vacation. It is the loveliest quality fabric, nice and thick, and it doesn't wrinkle! The bolero is made from some interesting cotton twill-like fabric we had in our stash.

The bolero is made from a vintage 1940s pattern, the same one I used for my purple bolero. It is a very easy pattern to put together, and makes a very flattering, fun-to-wear garment! And you could easily change the look just by reshaping the revers, adding lace, etc.

She used Simplicity 1692 for the bodice of the dress, adding darts instead of tucks, altering the fit a little bit, and altering the neckline to be a sweetheart-shape, based off of another vintage pattern we have. The skirt is from Butterick 5951. It's so much fun being able to put different patterns together to achieve a new look! :)

A pearly belt buckle adds the perfect touch. We both *love* belt buckles with prongs. They are so comfortable to wear, and although it's a bit of a pain making eyelets for them, it's worth it for how secure the belts are. 

The neck edge, hem and revers are faced with contrasting fabric and slip-stitched in place. It's such a fun design! And the dress looks lovely with or without the bolero. It's the perfect sundress, and is so versatile for casual or dressy wear!

What a gorgeous dress, don't you think? 

Thanks for stopping by! :) Have a lovely week, and enjoy the springtime!! 

Meanwhile, don't forget about the sale going on in my Etsy shop, through March 31st. Use coupon code SPRINGTIME to save 20% off your purchase. :) 

• 1938 Dress in Periwinkle •

A few months back, my dear friend Sarah of Prairie Rose Sewing sent me a package that included this gorgeous dress pattern from 1938. I couldn't wait to sew it up! I found some gorgeous fabric at Fabric by the Pound down in Alabama that just begged to be made into it.

I absolutely love the style! It's so very different from anything else that I have!! The style of the front bodice reminds me very much of Kristen's teal dress, which is just gorgeous.

The remarkable part about this pattern is that there are three different garments that can be made from it; a jacket and skirt, View 1, and a dress, View 2. Quite a difference from nowadays when pattern companies split up one outfit into three different patterns!! 

The pattern called for making thread loops, but let's be realistic; thread loops are a pain. And time consuming. So I made fabric ones instead!! :) They worked out very well, and once again are a change from my typical closures. Thanks to a tip from Brigid a while back, I used the nifty method of basting the loops onto a piece of interfacing, then sewing that into the seam and tearing it away afterwards. It is so much easier than trying to pin each loop onto the dress and stitch it!

I love the gathered accent on the front bodice as well; it adds such a ladylike touch!

The sleeves are puffy (my favorite!) and have pleated accents at the hem.

I finally found the perfect project for my pearly buttons!! :)

This buckle is another southern vacation treasure, and it's so nifty! Most other buckles we have are the two-holed kind, so this is a neat change of pace.

And, of course, I'm wearing my gorgeous shoes from Two Old Beans. They are still my absolute favorite. Leather, brand new, arch supports, low heel, perfect color to match the majority of my clothing....the list goes on!! :D

Thank you again, Sarah for the gorgeous, gorgeous pattern! :) I love it!

• Spring Sale •

That's right, it's SALE time!! Through March 31st, use coupon code SPRINGTIME to receive 20% off your entire purchase in my Etsy shop.

Have fun shopping! ;)

• Neat Tailored 1940s Dress •

This is the story of a dress that came this close to being in my Etsy shop! :) 

It all started with a pattern we bought about 2 years ago, which always intrigued me. I found that some fabric which I had bought for quilt backing (oops) matched the checked fabric I had in my stash, so I thought I'd use them to make this pattern.

(That just goes to show you that no fabric is safe when there's a sewing-happy seamstress around...) ;)

I started in on the dress, and got to the point of sewing the trim on when I started having trouble. I forgot to lengthen the trim along with the bodice, so it was too short. Plus I had been sewing my miters all wrong. So where did the dress end up? The UFO pile, of course!! Where else?

Months later, I decided to give it a whirl again and pieced the trim in order to make it long enough. (Yay for successful pattern-matching! I have to search for the seam to find it!!!) :D

I sewed and sewed on the dress, only to try it on and h-a-t-e it. I mean, really hate. Needless to say, it went back to the pile. I pulled it out a few weeks later, figuring on finishing it up and listing it in my Etsy shop. I finished sewing on it, made the belt, and tried it on one more time just for kicks. And what do you know, I loved it! :)

It was a narrow escape for this dress, but I am so glad it ended up being in my wardrobe!

The pattern called for buttons, but they didn't seem to be the right touch. I really didn't want to sew snaps on the bodice, so I stitched it down over the topstitching instead. It worked like a charm, and the neck hole is still plenty big enough to slip over my head. 

Any day you don't have to sew snaps on is a good one, right? ;)

The miters were surprisingly easy to sew!

Since the trim of the dress is asymmetrical, I decided to do an asymmetrical belt, so to speak. I rather like the effect of the side-buckle!

*shoe admiring break*

These shoes really are my favorite!!!! They are original NEW 1940s oxfords from Two Old Beans. In my size. :D :D And they're dreamily comfortable. AND, they match so many of my dresses! Bonus on every side!! :)

It was so nice to have a 60-some degree day out and not have to freeze to death for pictures!! :) I am looking forward to spring!

Thanks for stopping by, folks! Have a wonderful week! :)

• Mom's Wintry Gray Ensemble •

Well, I'm only a week late with this post! ;) I do have a good excuse though, which is, we were on vacation! Our long-awaited trip down south finally took place, and we had a blast! :) I can't wait to share some pictures of our trip (and our outfits)!

Meanwhile, today's post is the afore-promised photos of my mom's wintry flannel ensemble. 

She made a half circle skirt out of her flannel fabric, with a gorgeous coordinating blouse.

Back when she made this blouse, we hadn't done a whole lot of research on vintage patterns and styles, but she ended up doing something very vintage-appropriate without even realizing it! :) 

She was planning on making this a button-front blouse, but ended up forgetting to add overlap when she cut out the front bodice pieces. As a result, she had to seam the fronts together and make some sort of opening at the neck. She finally decided on what we later found out was called a "vestee", a small piece of fabric with buttons sewn on that simply buttons into the front blouse. It ended up being just the perfect touch, and perfectly period appropriate! :) It's always great when things like that happen!! 

The blouse is made from a pattern that she self-drafted, with top-stitched tucks in the front and darts in the back. 

There is also quite a story behind the center front "placket." She wanted to have an accent color of some sort, so she ended up using the reverse side of the fabric for the center front and collar! It turned out beautifully, and adds the perfect touch.

The beret she is wearing is one that I (somehow....in a rare fit of crocheting creativity) made from a self-drafted pattern. Actually though, it isn't a self-drafted pattern since I didn't write any of the instructions down. ;) In any case, I just love how it looks on her! Since I am pretty well incapable of knitting, it was nice to be able to crochet a pretty beret.

Thanks for stopping by! :)